The Policy File

Each week on the Policy File we round-up some essential weekend policy reading from around the web. This week we look at the Orlando shootings and gun policy, political tensions in Cambodia, and trouble in the South China Sea.

The shootings at an Orlando nightclub in the United States this week has once again brought gun policy to the forefront of public debate. On Time, Jacob Davidson and Heather Jones look at why the US has more firearms than any other country in the world, including Yemen where firearms (even machine guns) can be purchased without restriction.

On The Council on Foreign Relations, Jonathan Masters compares US gun policy with those of Canada, Israel, Norway, Japan, and the United Kingdom, while The Guardian looks at what the US can learn from the rest of the world.

Edward McBride and Ryan Avent at The Economist discuss the economics of gun violence and gun control in a short podcast, while on Policy Forum, the director of GunPolicy.org Philip Alpers says the US could learn some valuable lessons on gun control from Pacific Island nations.

Amid rising political tensions in Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Sen has announced an election date of July 2018. On The Cambodia Daily, Alex Willemyns looks at the likelihood of political change in the country, while On The Diplomat, Mong Palatino looks at the ongoing protests in the country, and says it’s a reminder that human rights and democracy are still under threat.

On Radio Free Asia, Okunthea Hong, Sarada Taing, and Neang Ieng report on how foreign states have been warned to stop interfering in Cambodia’s domestic processes. While on New Mandala, Ana McKenzie takes a look at Cambodia’s ruling power and the bumpy ride to the polls.

ASEAN recently released a statement saying the ongoing disputes in the South China Sea have the potential to seriously undermine peace in the region – hours later retracting the statement claiming urgent amendments needed to be made. On Forbes, Tim Daiss looks at how the South China Sea disputes have impacted US-China relations, while on The Strait Times, Lee Teck Chuan discusses how the conflicts have affected trade and commerce in Singapore.

On The Canberra Times, Matthew Pennington compares where the world stands on the South China Sea, while on Policy Forum, Maria Ortuoste examines the strategic partnership developing between the Philippines and Japan.

Australians head to the polls in two weeks after a long election campaign covering everything from health to security. On Policy Forum, Eliza Murray looks at how a prolonged election campaign offers the potential to influence public policy, while Rod Keenan says it’s time to revisit Australia’s regional forest agreements.

Don’t forget to register for our next Australian election event on climate, energy and the environment here or listen to the recent podcast on health policy here.

Want more for your weekend? How about our Policy Forum Podcast series? You can catch up with all 11 podcasts so far on iTunes, on Stitcher and on Soundcloud. If you like what you hear please give us a review on iTunes and help us get the word out.